


Suit Up

by awildlokiappears



Series: Love Lives Free [1]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fuck me it hurts so good, I literally got back from Civil War an hour ago, M/M, Practice in dialogue, Rough cut, Will edit later, fix it ficlet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-06
Updated: 2016-05-06
Packaged: 2018-06-06 16:45:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6762070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awildlokiappears/pseuds/awildlokiappears
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony would like to make it clear, he's still mad, but, y'know, there's room to talk. </p><p>Spoilers: It's pretty spoiler-y for the ending of the movie, so if you haven't seen it yet, might be wise to wait, so that it all makes more sense. I needed to write something for catharsis, so this is that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Suit Up

  
-click-

  
"Hey." Tony took a long, deep, rattling breath, and let it all out in a whoosh.

  
"Hey. So...how are you guys?" There was a faint chuckle over the phone, Steve's familiar voice a little hoarser than before. Tony knew they were all in Wakanda, knew that they were guests for T'Challa and the Royal Palace; hell, Nat was there now, doing what she could by combing each file she'd dropped on the web of Hydra's for any sort of way to de-brainwash Bucky. Ross was furious, of course.

  
"We're doing alright. Sam's worried about Rhodey."

  
"He's making some real headway with the PT, no worries; that and Stank merch is his new favorite thing in the world. I honestly did not think it was possible for him to be any more of an ass to me, and yet I've once again been proven wrong...thank you for that. Just...thank you."

  
"I really did hope it might raise at least a smile...and I'm so sorry. So, so sorry, Tony..."

  
"I know you are. I'm not...I'm not blaming you. Hell, I think I might just be ready to forgive Barnes too; he had no choice in his actions. I'm still mad, yes, but..."

  
"I couldn't even begin to stop you. I don't deserve to be forgiven; Bucky does, but I...I crossed a line. Hell, I crossed a ton of them. And I didn't once do it for the right reason..."

  
"Except you found out the truth behind my parents' deaths. You found Bucky. You found the Siberian compound, and those poor, frozen bastards that had Zemo chosen to, would have decimated the world with those commands. I'm not happy at all about the way you went about it, that half our team had to be incarcerated on the Raft, that you left them..."

  
"...Yeah, Clint uses my ass as target practice, and Wanda still won't speak to me. She talks to Clint and Sam every day, though, so I'm not...I'm just happy she's talking. And being a kid."

  
"...Yeah, I screwed up there, too. But she still accepted my friend request on Facebook, so we're totes buddies." Steve laughed at that, a little weak, a lot relieved, and Tony sat back, blinking away the burning in his eyes as he grinned. "So, to change the subject a tiny bit...I've been hearing rumbles in that area; is that something you guys are doing, or do we have a green friend maybe ready to come out of hiding again?"

  
"That, I'm not so sure of myself. It could be one of T'Challa's enemies; he's got his fair share of villains here, though most of them are after the Vibranium supply."

  
"Which, let's be fair, is a hell of a reason to have enemies. I'd ask if you're on the lookout, but I know better."  
"Yeah, I've been joining the patrols; I'm not allowed on the borders, but they let me patrol the Palace and compound."

  
"That's good; you've got a little too much golden retriever in you to stay inside all day." The snort he got made him laugh, and Tony twirled FDR's pen, the one Steve had returned to him, that fateful day it all started a month ago. He'd kept the pens on him at all time, taking the time to refill them with ink, just a little, and practice his utterly atrocious penmanship. It really had gone to hell in the last...what, twenty years since he'd set foot in the industry? But the pens were...a link. Between him and his dad, and himself and Steve. Maybe not the best link, like this little flip phone, but...

  
"...I was serious in that letter, Tony. We're here, and we're willing to help. Maybe Clint and Wanda a tiny bit less so, but..."

"Well, I kinda can't blame them. I was a dick."

  
"So was I. And I will let you know anything about Bruce...but I'm not going to bring him in."

  
"...I don't want you to. The man's...the man's been the destruction of a lot of places in this world, and each time he went green, he was always afraid that even if he reverted back...the rage wouldn't abate this time. That he'd turn into his father, all over again." There was a sharp intake of breath in his ear, and Tony sighed. "And that, by the way, is not from Ross's files; that's all from Bruce, the night after New York."

  
"...I can't say I blame him..."

  
"Neither can I. So, just...let him be. Let me know if he'd like anything, and let him be."

  
"Yeah, you bet...well, I better let you go, can't have Ross actually manage to trace us."

"Hah, as if he really could...oh damn, he got Fury in on it. Well, I'll see you when I see you, Steve."

  
"Likewise, Tony. Stay safe."

  
"I've got your shield, I'll be fine."

  
"...Don't think it was ever my shield, Tony. It's always belonged to you." The soft click as the call ended, and Tony smiled, shut off the phone, and folded it, tucking it in the pocket inside his jacket, and taking another breath, letting it out slowly. Getting up from his desk stiffly, he paused to stretch, smiling, just a little, as some random vibration downstairs made the room sing, just for a moment...and turned away from the freshly painted shield on his wall, framed on either side by portraits of his father, mother, Jarvis, and Aunt Peggy, while underneath, on the small set of drawers he kept his hard files in, a smattering of photos, set in frames both exceedingly chintzy and elegant, rested.

  
It was a truism that he'd never really put a lot of thought too; he wasn't the kind of guy who did well with friends, let alone family. Hell, the only people, for the longest time, who cared about him for more than his money were Rhodey, Pepper, and Happy. And...he'd been okay with that. Not...whole, that's for sure, but okay. And then Coulson, and SHIELD, had snuck into his life, bringing Fury, to wake him up, and show him what he could become. They brought Natasha, and soon, brought Steve, Bruce, and after New York, Clint, Thor. Their smiles and laughter brightened each photo, and for a brief flicker, they'd had both Pietro and Wanda, Vision and Sam too.

  
'The blood of the covenent is thicker than the water of the womb'; too many people shortened it, of course, and misread the meaning, but Tony, well...he did have a hard time forgeting. Though, frankly, he much preferred their version..it was short, simple, and to the point, and as he came out of the offices, striding into the middle of the living areas, he grinned at the two men still recuperating on the couch, to Vision attempting to cook in the open kitchen, and Peter doing his homework on the table. Rhodey glanced up as he came in, as did a pale, but healing Pietro, and Tony grinned.

  
"Avengers, suit up."


End file.
